


Worthy

by soprano_buddy15



Category: The Last Kingdom, The Last Kingdom (TV), The Warrior Chronicles | The Saxon Stories - Bernard Cornwell
Genre: Episode 7, In-Between Scenes, Sihtric is the best, Spoilers for Season 4, The Coccham Crew were really babysitters season 4 let's be honest, big sad, honorary uncle, season 4
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:53:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24516463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soprano_buddy15/pseuds/soprano_buddy15
Summary: SPOILERS FOR SEASON 4, EPISODE 7Sihtric finds Aethelflaed and Aldhelm in the woods, and needs to tell the Lady that Aelfwynn is ill.
Relationships: Sihtric & Aelfwynn, Sihtric & Aethelflaed, Sihtric & Young Uhtred
Comments: 14
Kudos: 27





	Worthy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Java_Blythe_Peralta](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Java_Blythe_Peralta/gifts).



> Hello my fellow fans,
> 
> So I really admired Arnas Fedaravičius's physical acting in season 4 because he does so much with so few lines. As I rewatched this episode, I really loved how his body language said so much in these scenes. So, I decided to delve a little bit deeper into Sihtric's head and this is what came out. 
> 
> I really hope you enjoy! Constructive comments are always welcome! Just don't be rude, because nobody wants that.

“My Lady, Aldhelm.” Sihtric greeted them, relief flooding through him that he and Young Uhtred were able to find them. “You are not easy to find.” They had been riding hard for at least a week, sleeping just a few hours a night and leaving and continuing again just before sunup. 

“Did Uhtred send you?” Aethelflaed asked breathlessly. “What news of my daughter?” She looked eagerly between the two of them.

He knew that Aethelflaed would ask about Aelfwynn as soon as she was able, and he had spent everyday on their search trying to find the words on how to tell Aethelflaed that her daughter was ill. “She is safe,” he began. “Uhtred has returned to Aegelesburg to bargain for your protection.”

“Is Aelfwynn with them?” Aethelflaed asked, confused and concerned. 

Swallowing, Sihtric hesitated as he tried to find the words. How do you tell a mother that their child is sick? He knew that he could not bear it if his son was ill, especially with the sickness. “She is being cared for,” he said, and looked up to meet Aethelflaed’s eyes. “But she became unwell.”

“The sickness?” Worry was clear in Aethelflaed’s voice, and her eyes became glassy. 

“It may not be,” Young Uhtred jumped in. “She has traveled a great distance.” 

Aethelflaed took a deep breath, and Sihtric knew that she was trying to keep herself in order when terror clearly wanted to grip her tightly. “Take me to her,” she said, and moved in between them to go and find their horses.

Sihtric shared a look with Young Uhtred. He appreciated that Uhtred was trying to settle Aethelflaed, that it could just be exhaustion making Aelfwynn sick, but deep down, Sihtric knew that Young Uhtred was just as worried as he was. _We do not even know if Aelfwynn will be there when we return,_ he thought, and shuddered as it went through him. 

“Where is she?” Aldhelm asked once they had found their horses and were preparing to head off. Young Uhtred was just finishing filling up their water skeins, and Sihtric pulled himself up onto his mare. 

“We found an abandoned estate,” Sihtric replied, squeezing his legs, and they began to walk towards the road, navigating the rocky terrain and dodging around the trees. “But Eadith and Osferth took her to a healer in the woods.”

“Is Osferth able to help Aelfwynn?” Aldhelm asked. “From what I’ve heard, you are the healer.” Aethelflaed had not spoken since they had found their horses, but Sihtric knew that she was listening to every word Aldhelm was saying.

“I have no experience with the sickness. Osferth has read of herbs that could possibly help. Besides,” he quieted, glancing back at Aethelflaed. “I have tracked many people in my service to Lord Uhtred, but you are by far the hardest people I have tracked.”

Aldhelm understood Sihtric’s soft tone as he followed his gaze to Aethelflaed. “You do not wish for her to know that we covered our tracks too well?”

“Aldhelm, I will be plain with you.” He brought his mare closer beside Aldhelm. “I am worried that we are too late.”

Aldhelm nodded, sharing Sihtric’s grief. “I shall not tell her.” 

Sihtric nodded in thanks just as Young Uhtred shouted from the lead. “The road is just here!” He called back. Sharing a look with Aldhelm, they spurred their horses into a gallop as the road opened, and Sihtric led the way.

*****

“Just here, my Lady,” Sihtric reined in his mare as they approached the wooden huts. As Aethelflaed jumped off of her horse, he surveyed the area, noticing the lack of other horses and the old woman coming out of her shack. His heart jumped into his throat as he held onto the horses reins.

Aldhelm had gone to talk with the old woman, but Sihtric kept his eyes on Aethelflaed as she entered the hut on the edge of the camp. He clenched his jaw as she paused, turned around, and came back to Aldhelm. Dread filled him at the expression on Aethelflaed’s face.

“She says your daughter passed on to the next life,” he heard Aldhelm quietly say to Aethelfaed. “And her body was taken to Aegelesburg.”

Swallowing hard, Sihtric could not bear to meet Aethelflaed’s gaze as his sorrow grew. He heard Uhtred inhale sharply, and began murmuring prayers under his breath. 

Closing his eyes, he could not help but think of his own family. He could not imagine losing his own son. 

_If you had been faster at tracking them, Aelfwynn might still be alive._

Sihtric bit his lip as the thought raced through his mind, and he hurriedly clutched the pendant of Thor’s hammer around his neck. It was just a thought, but it pooled in his stomach and he felt sick. 

“Hey.” Sihtric looked up as Young Uhtred placed his hand on his shoulder. “Aethelflaed knows where her daughter is. She would not know without you.” 

Somehow, Young Uhtred had felt his pain. “But if I had done better,” Sihtric whispered to Uhtred under his breath. “If I had found their path sooner, a mother would be reunited with her daughter.” 

“Sihtric, you did what many would not be able to. I could see everyday how hard you worked on finding them.” There had been many days when Sihtric had almost picked up a trail only to lose it shortly after. He remembered how angry those evenings would be, Uhtred looking at him with concern as he would build up the fire, eat their evening meal, and go to sleep without a word. “You feel the sorrow and grief, and that is how we unite in our differences.”

“I failed Aelfwynn, Uhtred.” Over the weeks, he had grown very fond of the girl and her infectious smile. He had loved teaching her how to care for the little pony they had at Saltwic, and her giggles as he led the pony around the yard warmed his heart.

Uhtred shook his head hard. “No you did not,” he said. “You set out to find Aelfwynn’s mother. You found her.” He grabbed Sihtric’s arm. “And she knows. In Heaven, she knows. We cannot believe that Aeflwynn left us without a fight.”

Sihtric smiled slightly at that, remembering her stubbornness as he desperately attempted to care for them at Saltwic. Aethelstan had never been a problem for him, as he found more joy in irking Finan. Stiorra would avoid Aelfwynn and Aethelstan by any means necessary, leaving Sihtric to attempt to pull Aelfwynn away from her birds and get her to bed at a reasonable hour. He soon found out that promising to teach her how to braid hair was an assured way to negotiate with the girl.

Aelfwynn had loved practicing her braids in his hair, and numerous times he would wake up from a nap with four more than he had started with. He would purposefully leave them in his hair, sometimes for a few days before she decided she did not like them and try something else. He would then teach her a new braid, and he would get another nap as she practiced for hours. 

He looked up as Aethelflaed approached them, her faced flushed and tear tracks running down her cheeks. “I wanted to thank you, Sihtric.” She said, her voice cracking as she tried to settle her breathing. “You have always done so much for me, and now for my daughter.”

“My lady, your thanks are not necessary,” he said, meeting her gaze. He hesitated before he continued speaking, but decided that Aethelflaed would understand. “My lady, your daughter is worthy of Valhalla,” he said, and knew it was one of the most sincere things he had ever said.

Her nostrils flared as she inhaled sharply, fresh tears brewing in her eyes, but Sihtric knew that Aethelflaed understood. She had spent enough time with Uhtred, and even with Erik to know what it meant to get to Valhalla. She nodded, looking down as she sniffled, and Sihtric knew that his words had meant a lot to her. 

“You said Uhtred was in Aegelesburg?” Aldhelm came up and grabbed his horses reins. His own eyes were red. 

Nodding, he mounted his mare as Aethelflaed prepared to leave. “He is waiting for you there with Finan.”

Aethelflaed took a deep breath, and then spurred her horse into action. Aldhelm quickly tossed the old woman a coin, and quickly took off after her. As Sihtric and Young Uhtred followed, Sihtric could feel his mother’s crucifix sitting against his chest as well as Thor’s hammer bouncing on his cuirass. 

Taking in a deep breath, he sent up a prayer to the Christian God before gripping his pendant and saying one for the warriors in Valhalla, knowing that Erik would be rejoicing in meeting his daughter.


End file.
